Southern Thailand

Southern Thailand PDF Author: N. John Funston
Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies
ISBN: 9812308873
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 96

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Book Description
This monograph examines the tragic conflict in Thailand's southern Muslim-majority provinces near the border with Malaysia. Although the conflict has attracted wide national and international interest, no agreement exists on the cause of the resumption of violence in an area that had remained free of major conflict for two decades. This monograph critically examines explanations for the conflict and traces its evolution from the early 1990s to the beginning of the Samak government in 2008. The study points to a wide variety of factors that were important in the resumption of the conflict, with policies of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra being critical in determining the timing and intensity of the violence. These conditions include: (1) the resumption of an age-old conflict between Malay Muslims from Pattani, Yala, and Narithiwat Provinces against a discriminatory central government; (2) entrenched problems of criminality in an area far from the capital and with a porous border with Malaysia; (3) the disbanding of important conflict resolution institutions by former Prime Minister Thaksin, who then gave priority to hard line (sometimes extrajudicial) security policies; (4) growing Islamic religiosity, influenced by regional reform movements and international developments, including the example of extremist movements such as Jemaah Islamiyah; and (5) the growth of southern insurgent movements--which have never issued public demands and whose real leaders remain unknown. In this complex setting, no resolution to the violence appears likely in the near future, as Thaksin's main policies have been retained since the September 2006 coup that ousted his government.

Southern Thailand

Southern Thailand PDF Author: N. John Funston
Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies
ISBN: 9812308873
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 96

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Book Description
This monograph examines the tragic conflict in Thailand's southern Muslim-majority provinces near the border with Malaysia. Although the conflict has attracted wide national and international interest, no agreement exists on the cause of the resumption of violence in an area that had remained free of major conflict for two decades. This monograph critically examines explanations for the conflict and traces its evolution from the early 1990s to the beginning of the Samak government in 2008. The study points to a wide variety of factors that were important in the resumption of the conflict, with policies of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra being critical in determining the timing and intensity of the violence. These conditions include: (1) the resumption of an age-old conflict between Malay Muslims from Pattani, Yala, and Narithiwat Provinces against a discriminatory central government; (2) entrenched problems of criminality in an area far from the capital and with a porous border with Malaysia; (3) the disbanding of important conflict resolution institutions by former Prime Minister Thaksin, who then gave priority to hard line (sometimes extrajudicial) security policies; (4) growing Islamic religiosity, influenced by regional reform movements and international developments, including the example of extremist movements such as Jemaah Islamiyah; and (5) the growth of southern insurgent movements--which have never issued public demands and whose real leaders remain unknown. In this complex setting, no resolution to the violence appears likely in the near future, as Thaksin's main policies have been retained since the September 2006 coup that ousted his government.

Conflict and Terrorism in Southern Thailand

Conflict and Terrorism in Southern Thailand PDF Author: Rohan Gunaratna
Publisher: Cavendish Square Publishing
ISBN:
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 230

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Book Description


The Malay-Muslim Insurgency in Southern Thailand--Understanding the Conflict's Evolving Dynamic

The Malay-Muslim Insurgency in Southern Thailand--Understanding the Conflict's Evolving Dynamic PDF Author: Peter Chalk
Publisher: Rand Corporation
ISBN: 0833045342
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 39

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Book Description
Current unrest in the Malay-Muslim provinces of southern Thailand has captured growing national, regional, and international attention due to the heightened tempo and scale of rebel attacks, the increasingly jihadist undertone that has come to characterize insurgent actions, and the central government's often brutal handling of the situation on the ground. This paper assesses the current situation and its probable direction.

Tearing Apart the Land

Tearing Apart the Land PDF Author: Duncan McCargo
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 9780801474996
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 268

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Book Description
Since January 2004, a violent separatist insurgency has raged in southern Thailand, resulting in more than three thousand deaths. Though largely unnoticed outside Southeast Asia, the rebellion in Pattani and neighboring provinces and the Thai government's harsh crackdown have resulted in a full-scale crisis. Tearing Apart the Land by Duncan McCargo, one of the world's leading scholars of contemporary Thai politics, is the first fieldwork-based book about this conflict. Drawing on his extensive knowledge of the region, hundreds of interviews conducted during a year's research in the troubled area, and unpublished Thai-language sources that range from anonymous leaflets to confessions extracted by Thai security forces, McCargo locates the roots of the conflict in the context of the troubled power relations between Bangkok and the Muslim-majority "deep South." McCargo describes how Bangkok tried to establish legitimacy by co-opting local religious and political elites. This successful strategy was upset when Thaksin Shinawatra became prime minister in 2001 and set out to reorganize power in the region. Before Thaksin was overthrown in a 2006 military coup, his repressive policies had exposed the precariousness of the Bangkok government's influence. A rejuvenated militant movement had emerged, invoking Islamic rhetoric to challenge the authority of local leaders obedient to Bangkok. For readers interested in contemporary Southeast Asia, insurgency and counterinsurgency, Islam, politics, and questions of political violence, Tearing Apart the Land is a powerful account of the changing nature of Islam on the Malay peninsula, the legitimacy of the central Thai government and the failures of its security policy, the composition of the militant movement, and the conflict's disastrous impact on daily life in the deep South. Carefully distinguishing the uprising in southern Thailand from other Muslim rebellions, McCargo suggests that the conflict can be ended only if a more participatory mode of governance is adopted in the region.

Conflict in Southern Thailand

Conflict in Southern Thailand PDF Author: Neil J.. Melvin
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Insurgency
Languages : en
Pages : 39

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Book Description
Conflict in Southern Thailand: Islamism, Violence and the state in the Patani insurgency is a study of the insurgency taking place in the southernmost provinces, which pits groups of Malay Muslim militants against Thai security forces and -- particularly in recent years -- against teachers and other local public sector workers, Buddhist monks, Muslim "collaborators," and other civilians. The conflict has already claimed more than 2400 lives and had major political repercussions. With the insurgents apparently in the ascendant, many inhabitants leaving their homes, and the government running out of new approaches beyond arming more local militia, the violence threatens to escalate further, with potentially grave consequences for Malaysia, Indonesia and beyond.

Rebellion in Southern Thailand

Rebellion in Southern Thailand PDF Author: Thanet Aphornsuvan
Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies
ISBN: 9812304746
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 102

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Book Description
This study addresses the competing histories of Thailand and Patani beginning in the fourteenth century up to the mid-twentieth century. It provides an explanation of the causes of ongoing political conflict between the Malay Muslims in the three southernmost provinces of Thailand and the Thai government, against which "separatist" movements fought in the 1960s. Even though January 2004 marked the beginning of the current violence that now plagues Thailand's south, most people in and outside the area still believe that the nature of such conflict is internal and could be resolved peacefully. The major contention in the competing histories of Siam and Patani revolves around national policies that resulted in discrimination and destruction of the Muslim's cultural identity and rights. In the early twentieth century under the rule of King Chulalongkorn, which was characterized by centralization and cultural suppression, Patani was reduced to a mere province. Further forced assimilation occurred under the Phibun government in the 1940s, at which time Islamic practices and the use of the Yawi language were curbed. The sources of political conflict—including the political status of Patani, ethnic identity, Bangkok politics, and bureaucratic misconduct in the south—have historical roots. Understanding and appreciation of each other's culture and ethno-religious identities could lead to positive political will on both sides for peaceful resolution of the conflict.

Mapping National Anxieties

Mapping National Anxieties PDF Author: Duncan McCargo
Publisher: Nordic Institute of Asian Studies
ISBN: 9788776940867
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Based on first-hand research in the world's third most intensive conflict zone after Iraq and Afghanistan, this book examines the debates around reconciliation, citizenship and identity, and the prospects for some form of autonomy for the Thai South.

Understanding Conflict and Approaching Peace in Southern Thailand

Understanding Conflict and Approaching Peace in Southern Thailand PDF Author: Imtiyaz Yusuf
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Ethnic conflict
Languages : en
Pages : 302

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Book Description


Reporting Thailand's Southern Conflict

Reporting Thailand's Southern Conflict PDF Author: Phansasiri Kularb
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317538765
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 195

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Book Description
Since 2004, Thailand’s southern border provinces have been plagued by violence. There are a wide array of explanations for this violence, from the revival of Malay nationalist movements and the influence from the global trend of radical Islam, to the power play among the regional underground crime syndicates, politicians, and state authorities. The disparate interpretations signal the dynamic and complex discursive contention of this damaging and enduring conflict, and this book looks at how this is played out in the Thai media, and with what possible consequences. In analysing the southern conflict coverage, the book presents the deficiencies in news coverage, as produced by four news organisations of different natures across a seven-year review period, and discusses the professional practices that hinder journalism from serving as a fair arena for healthy and rational democratic debates. Based on in-depth interviews with news workers, it argues that Thai journalism is not always monolithic and static, as shown in the discursive shifts in news content, the variations of journalistic practices and news workers’ disparate stances on the conflict. The book goes on to highlight the less immediately apparent difficulties of political conflict reporting, such as the subtle patterns of intimidation and media manipulation, as well as the challenges of countering socially-prevailing hegemonic beliefs in Thai society. Exploring the political contingencies and socio-cultural influences at play, this book provides an in-depth study of journalism’s role in politics in Thailand, and is of interest to students and scholars of Southeast Asian Politics, Media Studies and Peace and Conflict Studies.

The Malay-Muslim Insurgency in Southern Thailand

The Malay-Muslim Insurgency in Southern Thailand PDF Author: Peter Chalk
Publisher: Rand Corporation
ISBN: 0833044680
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 39

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Book Description
Current unrest in the Malay-Muslim provinces of southern Thailand has captured growing national, regional, and international attention due to the heightened tempo and scale of rebel attacks, the increasingly jihadist undertone that has come to characterize insurgent actions, and the central government's often brutal handling of the situation on the ground. This paper assesses the current situation and its probable direction.